Tag Archives: Star Wars

MASTERVERSE Two Bad

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I mentioned that I got two MASTERVERSE figures for my birthday. These were Tri-Klops and Two Bad.

You can see a video of the packaging for both figures here.

[VIDEO OF THE PACKAGE]

Two Bad. What a legacy character! The fun thing about the vintage action figure was the spring-loaded arms. This was designed so that he could sneak behind someone and grab them. Of course, you could also take those spring loaded arms (that had closed fists) and make each arm punch the other one in the face! This was a gimmick that seemed to work its way into the cartoon also..at least the two heads didn’t seem to agree with each other.

I am in favor of the 200x design, where were two characters (Tuvar and Baddrah) merged into one body by Skeletor as punishment for allowing their own personal rivalry to botch the capture of He-Man. If you read the bio on the back of this package, the responsibility for them being merged is on themselves, as they were stealing some treasure that mutated them.

Here is basic Two Bad

I have him armed up with everything except his alternate hands. There is a clip on the back of the armor to store a weapon. ”Two Bad” I didn’t take a better profile pic so we could see the axe. Also, I have the shield stored on the back of the figure with a weapon. The problem is that there is a rotating piece on his back. The weight of the shield and in this case the mace causes them to hang down. (You can sort of see the orange of the shield behind him.)

Here are the accessories.

You get alternate punching hands. a shield. A green double headed, blunt piked square mace. A pointy spiked traditional mace, a double barreled ray gun, and a double-headed battle axe. The only paint on the weapons seems to be the hilt of the axe and a wash on the axe. I can’t tell if the spiked mace has a pearl coating or if that is the molded plastic. (I think it is the plastic.). The Axe is my favorite piece, of course. It looks like one side of it has received alot of use. Details on the shield…notice how half of the shield has a circle motif, and the other half a square/diamond motif. There is duality all over these accessories!

This is how I figure on properly arming them with maces.

No problem getting Two Bad into this pose. He is very articulated.

Check out this photo…one of my favorites!

Stinkor didn’t come with a weapon. (Stinky figure, really. I mean…he sucks.). But that green mace looks good with him. So these two are attacking Battleground Teela, who has her ray gun. As I was shooting the photo…at the exact moment…Teela decides to fall forward, creating the illusion of action!

I can’t give Two Bad anything but a 5/5. I mean…compared to Stinkor. Two Bad has everything you could want in the character. Great accessries. Two heads. I paid only $20! Highly posable. He is a good size too. I just wish they would release Tuvar and Baddrah.

SpartanNerd Scoop…Marvel’s Star Wars Darth Vader #1

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Out sick on a Wednesday…giving me a chance to pick up a release day comic or two. I picked up Darth Vader #1 instead of that Harley Quinn kissing Batman thing…

I skipped on Star Wars issue #1. Don’t get me wrong, I have never been a fan of Star Wars comics. A huge movie fan. I read some EU novels, usually really enjoying them.  But all the comics I have read have been lacking. Of course, the news about Disney owning Lucasfilm and rebooting the EU interested me, but didn’t disgust me as it did many other fans because I haven’t been that involved. But I can say that I have been turned off by some of the product offerings so far… Especially the new toys. (The new toys are reminiscent of “green army men”, but cost a ton.)  And I haven’t been immersed in the clone wars cartoon, nor the new cartoon, but many of the represented characters haven’t appealed to me much. Probably Anakin’s apprentice most of all being what turned me off of that. (Ashoka Tano was far too “pre-teen brat” in the Clone Wars movie that kicked the whole thing off.)

But the cover of Darth Vader #1 looked cool, and the alternate cover looked cool as well, but not so much cooler that I bought it instead.

This story takes place right after the Death Star was destroyed at the end of “A New Hope.”  It is about Darth Vader’s penance to the Emperor.  Because it IS a new story today, I don’t know how much I should spoil.  But it isn’t a resolved plot or anything.

The first thing I took away was Jabba the Hutt apparently considers himself EQUAL to Vader.  I am saying “Vader just got downgraded.”  I don’t like it.  He is supposed to be THE VILLAIN.  There is an opening scrawl on the back of the front cover, and it is interesting because it takes the Sith’s viewpoint in explaining things.  I should think this would give us a Vader that is at least as strong as we saw him in the movies.  But Jabba regards Vader as his chump.  As does the Emperor.  And he just took a defeat at the hand of Luke Skywalker.

This issue dwells on the situation.

But what annoyed me the most was that the story is told OUT OF ORDER.  Apparently for no reason at all.

Out of order storytelling is becoming so CLICHE in comics.  I’m about sick of it, to be honest with everyone out there in Hub City Geek land.  Batman Eternal has been the CHIEF OFFENDER.  But all of those titles are doing it more and more.  And here Marvel’s first issue of Darth Vader tells us the present story, then two days ago, and then one day ago, and then NOW AGAIN.  Why not just start the story at two days ago?

The art in this book was really good.  The characters looked like their movie counterparts.  Vader’s mask had the old school, more asymmetrical look to it.  Jabba was a fat slob, the brief picture of the rebels looked good.  There was an annoying scene where we saw ALL of Jabba’s entourage, as we see them in “Return of the Jedi.”  And Bobba Fett was there.  I always had the impression that Bobba Fett was a well traveled man.  That he didn’t spend all of his time hanging out on Tattoine with the low-lifes.

So apparently Vader is on assignment from the Emperor, as a punishment.  And there is a new agent who we have no details about.  Everyone knows that there is jealousy from Vader.  He suspects, of course, that there is another apprentice being brought up to replace him.  And the gears for future story are set.

I am highly skeptical.  Did reading Darth Vader #1 catch my interest enough to want to purchase more books in the series?  I’m not sure.  I told the sales-lady at the Tangled Web not to hold these books for me monthly, that I would try it out first.  Maybe I will get to the end of this story arc.  But if issue #2 doesn’t wow me, it will be another Star Wars title that I ignore.

The art gets a 5.  The book gets a 2.  My average rating must be 3/5.